AKRON, Ohio: The Goodyear Tyre and Rubber Company confirmed today (21/11/00) that
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will conduct a preliminary
investigation into its Load Range E light commercial tyres.
The investigation will cover tyre information that Goodyear supplied to NHTSA
two weeks ago as part of an informal information exchange.
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In a statement the company said: “Goodyear has always voluntarily cooperated
with NHTSA by providing information promptly and thoroughly to assist the agency’s
efforts.
“The company constantly monitors the performance of its tyres and is confident
that, put in proper perspective, all of Goodyear’s Load Range E tyres on the
road today have excellent durability and performance.”
The statement also said that Goodyear is always looking at safety and performance
data and “recognises that there may be trends that if spotted early, can signal
the need to improve our products”.
The Load Range E tyres are heavy-duty tyres made primarily for commercial vehicles,
including light trucks, vans and trailers but rarely found on SUVs or other
consumer vehicles. In the past 10 years Goodyear has manufactured more than
27 million such tyres and estimates that half are still on the road.
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By GlobalData“The tyre tread separations in question are the most common form of failure
on all Load Range E tyres, and can be caused by a variety of things including
low air pressure, over-weight vehicles and damage from road hazards and debris,”
the statement said.
“Whenever Goodyear sees an unusual pattern of customer inquiries about any
of its products it immediately launches a thorough investigation. After such
a pattern appeared involving Load Range E tyres in 1995, three separate teams
of Goodyear engineers spent almost two years looking into every aspect of the
materials, design and manufacture of these tyres.
“After testing and re-testing every possible scenario, they found nothing wrong.
What they did discover was an evolving trend toward larger vehicles and a growing
tendency to put heavier loads in those vehicles which meant the tyres were sometimes
carrying heavier loads than their capacity allowed.”
Goodyear responded to the evolving usage by adding a nylon overlay to new Load
Range E tyres. By last spring all of the range had this new overlay, making
them even more durable at heavier loads.
Goodyear also claimed that the increased speed limits in many US states, from
55 mph to 70-75 mph, may be a factor in an increase in incidents involving its
tyres.
“In addition to the potential of additional heat build up by the tyres at higher
speed in loaded conditions, you also have the impairment of a driver’s ability
to control a vehicle if he or she encounters a "tyre-related" situation
such as a road hazard at the higher speeds,” the statement said.
“Goodyear urges drivers to check tyre pressures frequently and never exceed
load limits.”
